The Sunday News
Brandon Moyo, Sports Reporter
ANOTHER Craig Ervine batting masterclass saw Zimbabwe Select record the highest score of the series and eventually going to win the sixth and final match against Pakistan Shaheens by 32 runs at Harare Sports Club yesterday.
Yesterday’s win meant that Zimbabwe Select sealed the series 4-2. Ervine scored his 12th List A hundred as he fell for a well-batted 195 runs to help his side finish on 385/7 in 50 overs before going on to bowl out their opponents for 353 runs in 49,2 overs to claim the series. Over 700 runs were scored in the match.
The century was Ervine’s second in as many matches. In his last match, prior to yesterday, the national team skipper top scored with 166 runs. After losing the toss and being asked to bat first, Zimbabwe Select got an early wicket of Joylord Gumbie who departed for a duck before Ervine and Kaia put a 187 runs partnership for the second wicket before the latter fell eight runs short of his maiden ton of the series on 92 runs off 79 deliveries.
Ervine’s brilliant 195 runs came off 148 balls and the score became his highest in List A cricket, surpassing the previous best of 168 runs not out. He was run out with only two balls remaining in the innings. After Ervine and Kaia’s heroics, Ryan Burl chipped in with 31 runs after facing 18 deliveries while stand-in captain, Sean Williams scored 20 runs from 25 balls.
Mohammad Ali and Aamer Jamal took two scalps each for Shaheens, conceding 32 and 82 runs respectively. Mubasir Khan and Qasim Akram took one wicket each for the visitors while Shahnawaz Dahani, without any wicket, conceded 105 runs.
Defending a mammoth score, Zimbabwe Select had an early breakthrough, taking the wicket of Imran Butt for six runs leaving Shaheens on 15/1 in 2,5 overs. Zimbabwe Select went on to survive a scare of Khan and Rohail Nazir who top scored for the visitors with gallant knocks. Khan top scored with 115 runs off 77 balls while Nazir fell for 87 runs, just after he was dropped by Wessly Madhevere.
Sikandar Raza finished with the best bowling figures for the home side, taking three wickets for 66 runs in 10 overs while Blessing Muzarabani, Tanaka Chivanga and Luke Jongwe all took two wickets each. Williams took one as they rounded up the visitors’ innings and took the series.
Yesterday’s win will be a big confidence boost for the Zimbabwean team as the series was organised by Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) as part of the team’s preparations for the upcoming Men’s World Cup Qualifiers which will be staged on home soil.
The World Cup Qualifiers start on 18 June and will be played in venues across Harare and Bulawayo. Zimbabwe was put in Group A alongside West Indies, Netherlands, Nepal and the United States of America (USA) and their matches will be played in Harare.
In Group B, there will be Sri Lanka, Ireland, Scotland, Oman and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and their group matches will be played in Bulawayo. — Follow on Twitter @brandon_malvin
